the war outside our door keeps raging on
by Mrs. Elizabeth Gibbs
Summary: Skye doesn't show up for tai chi. May gets worried.


A/N: This is a totally self-indulgent mother/daughter mayskye fic I simply couldn't resist writing after the newest episode. Spoilers for 2x5 A Hen in the Wolf House. Title from Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift (ft The Civil Wars).

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

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><p>Skye doesn't show up for tai chi the next morning.<p>

Melinda lets it go, because she hadn't exactly had the easiest day, and she knows she's trying to process what she'd learned about her biological father and what Coulson had been dealing with. So, she lets her sleep and goes through the routine by herself, feeling oddly lonely. She'd done tai chi for years by herself, but for the past few months she'd had Skye beside her, and without the still not-quite-even breathing and sometimes-stumbling foot placements, it's too quiet in the gym.

She isn't at breakfast, and when ten am rolls around and there's still no sign of the younger woman, Melinda heads towards the dorms. She knocks on Skye's door, before doesn't receive an answer; she goes in anyway.

Skye is curled up with her back to the door; as Melinda moves closer, she discovers the tablet Skye's curled around, fingers still on the now-dim screen. A notebook isn't far away, scribbles covering the pages and the pen half-tucked under the pillow. Dark hair obscures the younger girl's face, and Melinda brushes it away gently, a sad smile tugging at her lips.

Coulson had told her he'd brought Skye in, and she felt the ache in her chest even more intensely than she ever had before. It had been one thing worrying about Phil; she'd spent half her life worrying about Phil. Skye was a new and dear addition to her heart- the whole team was, really, but Skye was something special. In Skye, she saw the life she gave up all those years ago when she took the mission in Bahrain; saw a glimpse of the life she could have had with Phil in another world. She saw so much of herself in the younger agent.

Skye was strong and smart and driven; she had talent and skills, and when she listened, she learned. She had a good heart, and as May watched her sleep, the innocent heightened in her face, she had to swallow down the sadness lodged in her throat.

"Skye," she said softly, shaking her shoulder gently. Skye stirred, sighing softly as she rose to consciousness, blinking slowly. "It's time to get up."

Skye groaned, turning into her pillow and mumbling "No Mom not getting up" before shoving her face into the fabric. May's mouth quirked slightly, breath catching at the words as her hand settled on Skye's shoulder, squeezing gently.

"You have to get up Skye," May continues quietly, stroking her thumb over her shoulder, flicking the bedside light on. "It's already after ten."

Skye's eyes shoot open at that, and she scrambles to sit up, the covers falling around her lap and she blinks the last vestiges of sleep from her eyes. "It is not."

May merely nods, and Skye pales, swallowing. "I was up researching- it got so late I wasn't even paying attention to the time and I must have fallen asleep and I forgot to set an alarm I can't believe I missed-"

"You get a pass today," May interrupts gently, covering one of Skye's hands with her own. "Yesterday was pretty rough."

Skye's eyes drop to her lap, and she lifts the hand not in May's to tuck her hair behind her ear. May doesn't say anything; just sits quietly with Skye and lets her know she's there. When Skye looks back up at her, her eyes are wide and wet, and May's grip on her hand tightens.

"I don't want to have come from that," she whispers, voice thick with the tears she was fighting to not let fall. "I don't want to _be_ that."

"Skye." May's voice is quiet but firm, and Skye swallows, looking back up at her. "It doesn't matter who or where or what you came from. It doesn't matter if you share DNA with the man who calls himself your father. You are the person you are now because you chose to be you. You chose to be Skye, you chose to be a SHIELD agent, and you chose to become the person I see before me today."

She squeezes Skye's hand again, reaching a hand up to brush the stray hair from her face, smoothing her palm against her cheek. "We don't love you because of where you came from. We love you because you're Skye."

Skye's lower lip trembles for a moment before she starts to cry, and it only takes May a moment to wrap the younger woman in her arms, cradling her against her chest. Skye's arms lock around her waist and her head rests on her chest; May presses a kiss to the dark curls before resting her cheek on the top of Skye's head, one hand pressed to his back, the other running through Skye's hair gently.

"You have a family here that loves you," she continues quietly, voice a low murmur as she brushes her fingers through sleep-knotted curls. "And we will continue to love you no matter what. I need you to remember that, Skye, not just for you, but for Coulson and everyone else too."

She pulls back slightly, cupping Skye's damp cheeks in her palms and making sure the younger woman is looking at her.

"And I need you to remember that for me," she whispers, voice thicker than before. "Okay?"

Skye nods, tears continuing to slip down her cheeks before May draws her in for another hug, squeezing tightly. "No matter what happens, we're all here. No matter what."

Skye nods again, face still buried in May's neck. May holds her for another few moments before releasing her, hands resting on her shoulders for a moment before she stands from the bed.

"Tripp made breakfast; there's still eggs and bacon on the stove," she tells her, heading for the door. "Take a shower, eat something, and we'll do some mid-day tai chi."

When she turns back, one hand on the door handle, Skye's looking at her, teeth sunken into her lower lip. She inhales shakily, and offers a weak smile.

"I think I finally found a mom that's a good fit," she said, voice hoarse, and May feels her heart stutter for a moment before she offers Skye a smile that's only slightly watery.

"I think you did too, Skye," she replies, and slips quietly from the room before she can say anything else.

She'll tell Phil later.


End file.
